The President of Russia Vladimir Putin continues to expand the ranks of his army.
Russian Army / © Associated Press
Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a decree for another increase in the strength of the Russian army as part of the country’s ongoing military reform. The document, signed on June 12, sets the authorized strength of the Russian Armed Forces at 2,399,130 personnel, of whom 1,510,000 are military personnel.
This is reported by ISW.
Putin issued a previous similar decree on March 4. At that time, the strength of the Russian army was set at 2,391,770 personnel, including 1,502,640 military personnel. Thus, the new decision provides for an increase of 7,360 military personnel.
Analysts note that such a modest expansion is unlikely to have a significant impact on the situation at the front in Ukraine. At the same time, Russia has continued to increase the number of its armed forces almost every year since the beginning of the full-scale invasion in 2022. For comparison, in 2022, the army was increased by 137,000 military personnel, in 2023 by 170,000, and in 2024 by 180,000 people.
According to ISW analysts, the increase in personnel is related to the implementation of a large-scale reform of the Russian army, announced back in 2023 by the then-Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu. This involves the creation of new military districts, formations, and units, which require an additional number of military personnel for staffing.
Recall that Russia’s military expenditures in the first quarter of 2026 reached record levels, amounting to about 5.9 trillion rubles, which is equivalent to almost 46% of all federal expenditures. Thus, effectively every second ruble of the Russian budget is directed towards the war and related needs. Expenditures have significantly increased compared to previous years, continuing the trend of large-scale militarization of the Russian economy. In total, since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, Russia has already spent over 53 trillion rubles on the war.
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